The newly published 2022 Long Island Sound Report Card from the regional environmental nonprofit Save the Sound has found the trend towards improving open water quality stalled in several areas while poor grades in bays have persisted and water quality may be threatened by rising water temperature.
The report found higher quality in the waters of the eastern Long Island Sound, due to a strong tidal exchange with the Atlantic Ocean and a lower population density, relative to areas further west. The Eastern Basin and Central Basin of the Sound received A+ and A grades in the report.
However, the quality improvement efforts Western Basin and Eastern Narrows plateaued, and the report gave these areas B+ and C grades, respectively. The Western Basin and Eastern Narrows covers the area from Bridgeport on the Connecticut shoreline and Port Jefferson on the Long Island shoreline, all the way to New York City.
The Western Narrows of Long Island Sound received an F, as it has in prior reports, although the report expressed optimism for change due to the investment in nitrogen reduction at area sewage treatment plants. As for the 53 bay segments monitored in the report, more than half (57%) received grades of C, D, or F and only 11 bay segments earned an A.
“We”™re finding evidence that investment in clean water infrastructure leads to measurable benefits for Long Island Sound,” said David Ansel, regional director of water protection for Save the Sound. “It”™s also clear that there is much more to be done, particularly in stressed bays throughout the length of the Sound, as well as in the western Sound.”
Results from the 2022 Long Island Sound Report Card have been posted to SoundHealthExplorer.com.
